Look for NFL “name” cuts

With the 2010 NFL season beginning March 5, teams will start clearing roster room for future free agents this week.

Some recognizable names, players who have had productive careers, will be released this week or next. And yes, I would expect at least two or three “name” Broncos to get their walking papers.

The Broncos had their best free-agent class in years, if not ever, last season as they found great value in signing nine players who made significant production in 2009 _ Brian Dawkins, Andre’ Goodman, Correll Buckhalter, Renaldo Hill, Andra Davis, Ronnie Fields, Darrell Reid, Jabar Gaffney and Lonie Paxton.

The most expensive of these players were Goodman, who got a $20 million contract, and Dawkins, who received a $17.5 million deal. That’s getting return on investment.

I don’t think the Broncos will be quite as active in the free-agent market this time, but I would expect them to sign around four to six new players to “starter” money.

Nicki Jhabvala is a Broncos beat writer for The Denver Post. She was previously the digital news editor for sports. Before arriving in Denver, she spent five years at Sports Illustrated working primarily as its online NBA editor. She also spent two years as a home page editor at the New York Times.